Cocktail of the Week: Pick of the Plums With Glenfiddich 14 Year Old
Fire tones exploding through majestic trees, a crispness in the air and a crunch of leaves underfoot, Chelsea boots and knitted sweaters, crackling logs, and the unmistakable sound of a cork pulled straight from a bottle neck. But, oh, that first blissful moment when the sweet oaken scents fill your nose and tug at your heart strings! Truly, there is no time of the year greater than whisky season. Let the brown spirits flow because, baby, it’s getting cold outside and we couldn’t be more excited to be pouring a dram of Glenfiddich 14 Year Old Bourbon Barrel Reserve.
Glenfiddich has been a master of the whisky game since 1887, and their bottles are always among our top picks for a sophisticated sip. We are, of course, not alone; Glenfiddich is the world’s most awarded whisky, with each bottle telling a tale of time and finesse. Skillfully crafted in the Scottish highlands by malt master, Brian Kinsman, the Glenfiddich Bourbon Barrel Reserve is a single malt Scotch that also wows bourbon crowds. Matured for a minimum of 14 years exclusively in ex-bourbon casks, this rich expression is finished in brand new deeply charred New American Oak, adding a decadence and complexity to the copper oak liquid.
Sipped straight up or on the rocks, Glenfiddich 14 Year Old Bourbon Barrel Reserve is a gift to the hedonistic senses. On the nose, you’ll find rich, luscious vanilla, with just a touch of lemon citrus. Fall baking aromas of caramelized brown sugar, stewed apples and cinnamon backdrop oak spice, inviting us in for that first smooth sip. On the palate you’ll find a creamier toffee than in any ‘old tyme sweet shoppe,’ with depths of candied orange, and toasted wood. Salivating yet? We are!
While the base spirit is markedly flawless, we firmly dare to cocktail with our single malts; because what is life without a little added opulence? The Glenfiddich 14 Year Old Bourbon Barrel Reserve makes for an excellent guest star in a Manhattan or old fashioned, as well as amid this sumptuous plum blend.
A riff on a classic sour, this masterfully re-inspired recipe allows the sweet vanilla and oak spice to sing through a body of autumnal plum, and makes for a perfect serve to guests at your hearth, or your seasonal soirees.
With temperatures dropping and yuletide an approaching promise, I’d like to leave you with a heartwarming tale to carry you through to the next season. In 1886, alongside his nine children, William Grant, invested in his dream of building a distillery and thus the tale of Glenfiddich began. Following a year of steady toil, the first ever drop of whisky came running off their shining copper stills on none other than Christmas day of 1887. The rest, as they say, is history — careful barrel aging, and history.
Slàinte Mhath!
